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How Long Does it Take the VA to Make a Decision?

By Douglas I. Friedman of Friedman Law Firm, P.C.

Thursday, November 12, 2020

Of course, we can't predict the future, but here are some general guidelines for your consideration.

Part of the answer depends on what kind of decision you are expecting. A decision on an initial application usually takes four to six months. After that, it’s hard to say, and a lot depends on what kind of appeal you choose.

Higher Level Review

You can ask for one of the VA's higher level employees to review the initial decision. This appeal is called a Higher Level Review, or HLR, and it is filed on VA Form 21-0996. This appeal is based “on the record” as it existed when the initial application was decided. In our experience, these appeals have also been taking about four to six months.

Request a Hearing

You can also request review by a judge from the Board of Veterans Appeals. This is done on VA Form 10182, and you can choose from three types of review. One is where the judge reviews your case, but you don't submit new evidence or have a hearing. This option would be best if you have no additional evidence to submit and oral testimony is not likely to help your case.

The second kind of judge review allows you to submit additional evidence, but without a hearing with the judge. Again, if oral testimony from you is not likely to help your case, but you have more evidence to submit, then this choice is for you.

The third option is to have a hearing where you can testify before the judge and submit additional evidence.

The time periods for requesting review by a judge is likely to be years, especially if you request a hearing. This is because the VA system is overwhelmed with cases right now. They are trying to work through the backlog. Unfortunately, we don’t know how long this will take.

Appealing without a Judge's Review

You can also file an appeal and submit evidence, but don’t want to wait for a judge to review your case. This kind of appeal is called a Decision Review Request -- Supplemental Claim, and it is submitted on a VA Form 21-0995. This is similar to filing an initial application, so the time involved should be four to six months.

The time periods discussed above are hard to predict. ,The VA changed its entire appeals process in 2019, so there are many new procedures being implemented and learned. Also, the VA is supposed to decide legacy appeals -- --; the ones in their system prior to the 2019 changes- --; before they decide new appeals.

If you have any questions about the wait time for an appeal or need assistance with your VA case, please call us at 205-879-3033.

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